


22 Years

by pepsicoughdrops



Category: Original Work
Genre: Implied/Referenced Abuse, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-13
Updated: 2020-08-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:15:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25874224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pepsicoughdrops/pseuds/pepsicoughdrops
Summary: 2 more filler stories!! also have a kinda bigger story for these characters in the works as well!!
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter 1

The group sat at a table in a bar, the music quiet and the people bustling in and out. Ginny had thought it would be a good idea to invite the others out to relax and spend some time together. 

Ginny knew everyone would be in agreement, well almost everyone. Osip was a little harder to convince than Edith, Julian, and Cooper. He didn't get out much as it was unless it was for errands or if Edith and Julian needed help with something, other than that he mostly kept to himself.

Ginny couldn't really blame the man, he had been through hell and back before Edith and Julian took him in a few years ago. She only knew a little of Osip's past before he came to America but it was enough, his mother was a strange woman who never let him out of her sight to the point he was kept locked in their house until he was 20 something. 

But here he was, sitting between Edith and Cooper with a glass in hand, listening quietly as Julian told a story that Ginny honestly hadn't been paying much attention to. A small smile was etched onto Osip's face as he watched his younger friend, and it made Ginny smile too. 

A few hours passed as the group laughed and exchanged stories of their whereabouts from the past weeks apart. Ginny had ended up with Edith leaning on her shoulder while Cooper told them about how his daughter was doing and that he would actually get to see her over the holidays.

Ginny's eyes glanced over Edith's head as Cooper continued to talk, catching Osip staring off across the room. He looked almost shocked, his eyebrows raising as he continued to stare. 

Following his eyes, Ginny spotted a table a few feet away from theirs'. At the table sat a man with dark brown hair, about shoulder length, with a few grey streaks in it. He didn't look old though, a little tired, but he looked to be in his late 30s at best. From his profile Ginny could see his cheeks were dotted with freckles and a few smile lines as he laughed along with the other members of his table. 

Before Ginny could lean over to ask Osip if he was ok the man stood up slowly from his seat and sat his now long empty glass on the table. Julian tried to ask where he was going but all Osip did was mumble a few words none of them could understand as he walked away from their table. Cooper had to turn his seat around just to see where Osip was going, Ginny and Edith both sitting up enough to see over some of the other bar patrons that started to walk by. 

Ginny kept her eye on Osip as he got to the brown haired man's table, every so often she would exchange a glance with the others in case something where to happen. A minute or two passed by before the group saw the dark haired man drop his drink on the table, it's contents spilling onto the floor but if he noticed he didn't seem to care as he shot up from his seat and pulled Osip into a tight hug. Osip seemed to return the hug just as much as the two almost fell over laughing loudly and speaking in what the group could only guess was Russian. 

Edith and Ginny shared one last look before both standing up completely and making their way over to the two men, Cooper and Julian following close behind. Once they got there Osip and his unknown companion were still holding onto each other, laughing, and talking together. Ginny had never seen him so happy before, he looked almost to the point of tears. 

"Osip?," Edith asked as she placed a hand on his shoulder, "Do you wanna introduce us and tell us why you got up so out of the blue like that?" 

Osip turned around, arm still wrapped around the other man's shoulders holding him close, a smile on his face and a few small tears dotted in the corners of his eyes. He seemed to collect himself for a moment, trying to think of the right words to say. 

"Eedie you remember me telling about my old friend back at home," Osip explained, accent still very thick and english not as smooth as when he took his time explaining things, "The one my mother had arrested, breaking and entering?"

Edith nodded, letting Osip continue explaining, a small smile starting to pull on her lips as she put two and two together. 

"This is Alexei!," Osip said with another laugh, patting Alexei on the chest as he laughed as well, "He said he is here for holidays, visiting extended family."

Alexei nodded as Osip explained to the group who he was and how they knew each other since his english was still very rusty compared to his friend's. 

Ginny smiled as the group stood and listened to Osip speak and translate any questions they asked Alexei, the man was very sweet and at the end of the night when everyone was leaving the bar he gave Osip one more hug before telling them he enjoyed their company and giving them a 'thank you' for reuniting him with his childhood friend. 

Osip fell asleep on the car ride home, a smile still on his face.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this where the implied/referenced abuse tag comes in btw just as like warning even tho it's not very big but if you know Osip's story then you'll know why I had to tag this as implied/referenced abuse and I guess a TW for disassociating even tho it's very short
> 
> also!! Osip and Alexei are speaking Russian in this just do not know Russian so you will have to use your imagination and I'm very sorry!!

Osip and Alexei sat on a park bench, the two had kept in contact and decided to meet up without Edith, Cooper, Julian, and Ginny being there. Sure Alexei liked Osip's friends, he thought they were lovely people, but it had been years since he had seen his childhood friend and so here they were.

The two had been catching up and talking almost non stop to one another, after not seeing each other for 22 years there was a lot to say. 

"You still bleach your hair?," Alexei had asked the question in almost a hushed tone, as if he didn't want any passerby to hear him. 

Osip had to resist the urge to flinch away when Alexei touched his hair, his mind telling him that 'it was ok' and 'it's just Alexei. He wouldn't do anything'. 

"It's-," Osip took a second to breathe, Alexei's hand still in his hair, "It's hard not to, you know? After having it bleached every day of my life since I was twelve it's…it's hard to let it go."

Alexei took his hand away from his friend's hair and placed it on his arm, "You know she's long gone, right?," his voice was still soft, "She's not going to find you again, I promise."

Osip felt as if a ton of bricks had been laid on his chest, everything started to weigh down on him at the mention of his mother. It was true she wasn't going to find him, she hadn't survived the house fire Osip caused as a means of escape as far as he knew, but there was always a tiny possibility clawing at the back of Osip's head. 

"Osip?," Alexei lightly shook his companion by the shoulder, "Osip you still with me?" 

Osip blinked a few times before bringing his hands up to rub at his eyes, the heavy feeling slowly starting to drain away as Alexei squeezed his shoulder. The pair sat in silence for another minute or two, the only sounds around being passing cars and crickets chirping in the grass as the sun started to set. 

"We could shave it," Alexei said out of the blue, "shave off all the damaged hair, it would grow back healthy."

Osip leaned back against the bench, tilting his head up to look at the shifting colors of the sunset, "Why not," was all he said.

Alexei smiled before standing up off the bench, pulling Osip up after him and dragging him back to the hotel he was staying at for the holidays. 

Edith and Julian didn't ask too many questions when Osip came home later that night, his hair buzzed off and a small smile on his face.


End file.
